


Friends to Packmates

by thornconnelly



Series: The Hale Spark [5]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Everyone Lives/Nobody Dies, Established Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski, Freshmen Year of College, M/M, Stackson friendship, Stiles Stilinski & Jackson Whittemore Friendship, The Hale Pack - Freeform, The Hales Love Stiles Stilinski
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-14
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 20:00:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 16,978
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26454529
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thornconnelly/pseuds/thornconnelly
Summary: Stiles and Jackson's road to friendship was never smooth... but by the time they get to college, Stiles counts Jackson as one of his closest non-pack friends. And maybe... someday... he can be one of his pack mates too.This is part of my Hale Spark series, which is just my whole-hearted desire for the Hales to have nice things <3
Relationships: Derek Hale/Stiles Stilinski
Series: The Hale Spark [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1892299
Comments: 79
Kudos: 384





	1. Time Zones

_“Hey are you staying fit at Stanford?_ ” 

Stiles stared at the text from Jackson with some confusion. They usually texted on the group chat, or sent each other memes through Instagram, but this was the first time Jackson had texted him individually.

_“Danny suggested we have a reunion lacrosse scrimmage Thanksgiving weekend. I don’t want you to get soft.”_

Stiles laughed as he finally texted back. _“I go running at least 3x a week. I can up my workouts though if you’re really worried_.” He looked up at Derek, who was grading at his normal spot at the kitchen table. “Jackson’s texting,” he explained. “He wants to plan a lacrosse game over Thanksgiving weekend and he’s worried I’m getting soft.”

Derek grinned, “I think you’ll manage at least as well as you did a few months ago.”

 _“I don’t want you to feel bad if I run laps around you_ ,” Jackson answered.

 _“Thanks for the consideration Jackass_.”

 _“Ha ha. You know I care. Plus, I might miss you and the rest of Beacon Hills_.”

Stiles swallowed and looked at the clock. He might be wrong, but he was pretty sure it was 3am in London. “I’m calling him,” Stiles said, “he’s being kind of weird.”

Derek shrugged, “No problem. Want me to leave so you can have some privacy?”

“Nah, it’s fine,” Stiles said. “Let me know if I’m keeping you from your work though.” Derek waved as Stiles video called Jackson, and was glad when he picked up on the 2nd ring. 

“Hey Stilinski,” Jackson slurred, the camera only capturing half his face. 

“Are you alright Jackson?” Stiles asked. 

“Yea,” he hiccuped before continuing. “I might be drunk though.”

“Are you with friends? Or at your dorm? You’re too pretty to be out wandering the city streets right now.”

Jackson huffed out a laugh, “I’m in my flat. You know that’s what they call apartments here?” The camera flew around, giving Stiles glimpses of Jackson’s bed and what Stiles figured was a desk, but might be a counter before it centered on Jackson’s face again. 

“Nice place,” Stiles responded, trying to suppress a grin. “How’s London treating you Jackson?”

“It’s great, mostly,” Jackson said, throwing an arm over his face as he collapsed onto his bed. “It’s just… different. It’s all so different. I mean… I’ve been here on vacation and to visit family, like every year. I just didn’t realize how different it would be to live here.”

“Yea, I get that man,” Stiles answered. “I’m only a couple hours away and it’s still so different. I think some of it is just… not being at home, you know?”

“That’s exactly it!” Jackson said, shifting his arm so he could look at Stiles. “It’s just… it’s not home.”

Stiles heard a door open and someone on Jackson’s side said, “Hey Jacks, that’s where you went. Who are you talking to now?”

Stiles was turned to face the handsome brown-skinned guy who was talking to Jackson with a British accent. “Nice to meet you!” Stiles said with a wave. “I’m Stiles, from back home.”

The guy laughed as he leaned in to Jackson’s phone, “Stiles! Jackson talks about you. I wasn’t sure that Stiles was a real name or not.”

“Awww you talk about me, Jackson?” Stiles crooned. 

“Shut up, man, I’m drunk,” Jackson groaned. “You’re not supposed to make fun of drunk people. It’s rude.”

“Jackson you made fun of me for like… our entire lives. I’m definitely allowed to make fun of you now.”

“Nooooo,” Jackson groaned. 

His camera shifted and Stiles was looking up at Jackson’s friend, who had obviously taken Jackson’s phone, “I’m Asif, by the way. I’m one of Jackson’s flatmates.”

“Hi Asif,” Stiles grinned. “Is Jackson alright? He seems a little…. a lot drunk.”

“Yea,” Asif laughed, “we were playing some… uh, drinking games before. Jackson and the rest of the group got pretty wasted, and then Jackson started calling friends from home. He talked to Danny for a while… and he kept drinking through most of their conversation.”

“Stop telling him my secrets!” Jackson shouted weakly. “And give my friend back! You can’t steal him!”

“Alright, alright, you don’t have to get so defensive,” Asif laughed as he gave the phone back to Jackson. “It was nice meeting you Stiles!”

“You too!” Stiles said with a wave, as Jackson’s face came back into view. He was still laying on his bed and frowning. Stiles laughed again. “You keep making that face and it’ll get stuck.”

“Shut up, man,” Jackson grumbled as he rubbed at his forehead. 

“So, tell me one of those water bottles next to your bed has fresh water in them,” Stiles said. 

Jackson glanced up, “Oh, yea, they do.”

“You should drink some,” Stiles said, “and then tell me about your classes.”

They talked for another half an hour while Jackson drank most of the water near his bed, before he eventually fell asleep. 

After Stiles finally hung up, he got up and followed Derek into the bathroom where he could hear the shower running. He stripped his clothes off and joined Derek in the shower, enjoying the warm look in Derek’s eyes as he opened his arms for Stiles. 

“I was hoping you’d finish soon,” Derek said as he pulled Stiles in for a kiss. “I’m glad you were chatting with your friend. Jackson sounded lonely. But also…”

“But also I’m glad he’s alright so that I can be in here now, with you,” Stiles finished as he slipped his hands around Derek’s wet waist. "I didn't embarrass you, right? I know I just spent like half an hour telling someone else about all of the things I like about you."

Derek grinned as he kissed his way down Stiles' neck, "I did not mind one bit. It's not exactly a surprise, you know?"

Stiles laughed as his hands traveled up Derek's back, tracing along the muscles there. "Can I perhaps... show you some of the things I was thinking about?"

Derek's eyes flashed blue for a second before he grinned, "I would love to know what's going on inside that mind of yours."

*

 _“Sorry for calling you so late last night_ ,” Jackson texted the next day while Stiles walked to his first class. 

Stiles did some quick math and figured out that it was late afternoon by Jackson. “ _Dude it’s no problem. I’m glad you were safe though. You can always text me._ ”

“ _It wasn’t too late, right? I know you don’t sleep much, but I keep forgetting how the time difference works_.”

 _“Nah it was like 8_ ,” Stiles texted back, grinning down at his phone in the middle of campus. _“And I’ve actually been sleeping better lately. Apparently having a warm body in bed with me helps?_ ”

 _“TMI_ ” Jackson texted back instantly, followed in quick succession, “ 😂😂😂 ” “ _jk obviously”_ and finally, _“Tell me more about Derek again. Danny said he met him once, and I know you talked about him last night… but I don’t remember much_ .” Stiles was laughing at Jackson as one more text came in, _“He has a sexy beard? Did you talk about his beard a lot?”_

 _“That’s what you remember?_ ” Stiles texted back before sending a selfie he had taken the other day. Derek was leaning his forehead against Stiles’ temple with his eyes closed to prevent them from catching the camera and causing a glare. This angle also particularly highlighted Derek’s gorgeous jawline. 

_“Wow_ ,” Jackson texted back a few minutes later. _“Good for you Stilinski_.” 

Stiles stared down at his phone while he walked across campus. He and Jackson had definitely gotten closer over the past year when Jackson stopped actively fighting their friendship, but he still hadn’t been entirely sure whether Jackson actually liked him or just tolerated him. But their interactions last night and today definitely leaned toward full friendship territory. 

_“How are you feeling today btw?_ ”

 _“Like shit. Thanks for making me drink that water. I think it made me feel like just shit instead of like absolute garbage._ ”

 _“Just shit. I like that_.”

“ _Hey did you call me pretty last night?_ ”

“😂😂😂” Stiles got into his car and turned it on while he texted Jackson back, _“I said you were too pretty to be wandering around the city alone as drunk as you were. Don’t let it go to your head, please_.”

 _“Don’t worry_ ,” Jackson texted back. 

“ _Alright I have class now and this prof is sensitive about phones. Talk later?”_

 _“Sure. I’m going to go drink like ten gatorades.”_


	2. Black Eyes and Birthdays

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter actually fits within chapter 5 of my fic ["The Spark Grows Up"](https://archiveofourown.org/works/26066971/chapters/63560053) \- but it should still stand alone mostly fine.

Stiles groaned as he looked down at his phone and saw that Jackson was calling. 

He had been trying to keep himself occupied all day while he waited for Derek to come home, but there was only so much that he could comfortably do with his broken ribs and bruised, swollen face. 

He had gone into the backyard for a bit, to add some layers of magic into his protective crystals, but one of the neighbors had seen him and immediately asked if he was alright. After that, Stiles had gone back inside and resigned himself to the couch. He hated feeling useless and helpless, and he definitely couldn’t explain to his neighbors that the only reason he got beat up was because he couldn’t defend himself with magic and forgot that there were other options. He still felt like a fool for relying on his magic so heavily that he became defenseless without it. Deaton had spent so long trying to prevent him from relying on his magic for things that could be done without it, and then the first circumstance that he stumbled into that needed a non-magical response and he had frozen. Absolute helpless panic. 

He hated it. 

He answered the video call, making sure that the camera was only looking at the bottom half of his face, “Hey Jackson.”

“Danny just told me you were mugged!” Jackson shouted. “Tell me you’re alright!

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” Stiles promised, “but I’m not showing you my face until you stop yelling.”

“What?” Jackson’s voice rose in volume. “What’s wrong with your face?”

Stiles winced, “Jackson, please. I’m fine. I’m just bruised and a little swollen. But I went to the hospital and got checked out and some painkillers. Just… please stop shouting. I look worse than I feel.”

Jackson took a few deep breaths. “Danny said that Derek beat up the guys who jumped you?”

Stiles laughed softly, “Yea he did. I was meeting up with him, and he was still like a block away when it happened, but he saw them and raced up the block. They only got in a few hits before he got there.”

“Fuck,” Jackson breathed out. “How bad is it?”

Stiles tilted his camera so Jackson could finally see his face. One of his eyes was circled in a deep purply blue color, while the white of his eye was shot with red. He was glad that the painkillers had also helped the swelling go down so he could at least see out of his eye now. 

“Also a couple of my ribs are broken,” Stiles admitted.

“Damn,” Jackson said quietly while he stared at Stiles’ face. “Stiles, what if Derek hadn’t been there?”

Stiles swallowed and bit his lip. “I know. It was really scary.” Stiles took a deep breath and shook his head gently, “But I’ve decided when my ribs heal, I’m going to start taking self-defense classes.”

Jackson nodded several times, “That’s a good idea. Yea. Maybe, do you think Danny and Lydia would take self-defense classes too? And… I mean, I know I took karate when I was a kid, but maybe I could see what kind of classes they have here. Damn it, Stiles, they could have really fucked you up.”

“I know, Jackson,” Stiles sighed. “But that’s a great idea about everyone taking them. I definitely thought that I would be able to handle myself, you know, I’m not weak or anything, and my dad taught me how to throw a punch, but I just… I totally froze.”

“I’m gonna do some research and text the group, alright?” Jackson asked, already looking at his laptop. “I’m really glad you’re okay, man.”

“Thanks for checking on me, Jackson.”

“Yea, of course,” Jackson said, glancing at his phone again. “I know I fought it for a long time, but you’re one of my people now.”

Stiles sighed and grinned, “I know, bud, I know.”

*

“Hey where’s Derek?” Jackson asked, peering at the screen. “How come I never see him?”

Stiles laughed, “He’s out. I figured it would be just us, like old times.”

“Plus,” Lydia said, throwing an arm around Danny’s shoulders, “It’s Danny’s birthday. We don’t need to focus on Stiles’ boyfriend, as wonderful as he might be.”

Stiles laughed loudly. “That’s right! We’re here to celebrate Danny’s birthday.” 

“Hmm,” Jackson said with a frown. “I’m going to start thinking he isn’t real, by the way.”

Danny laughed, “I’ve met him, Jackson. He’s real. I promise.”

Jackson squinted. “Fine. But I get to meet him when we’re home for Thanksgiving, deal?”

“Of course,” Stiles said with a grin. “I’m sorry for not introducing him over the summer so you could vet him.”

“Well, I think we should take a minute to talk about somebody else’s boyfriend,” Lydia said with a glint in her eye. Danny looked at her quickly, but before he could say anything she spoke, “Danny’s beau is quite captivating.”

“What?” Jackson nearly shouted, “Danny! You said you weren’t official or anything!”

Danny grinned widely, “He was waiting for me outside of each of my classes with a different gift.” He shrugged as he continued, “I couldn’t really keep playing hard-to-get after that. He was just too cute and earnest.”

“Where is he now?” Jackson inquired. 

“I told him I wanted to hang out with you guys for a bit, and then Lydia and I are meeting up with him for dinner.”

“My friend Angelica is coming too,” Lydia added. “It’s going to be a nice little group.”

“That’s awesome,” Stiles grinned. “Danny, tell me about these presents!”

“Well, first it was flowers,” Danny said with a grin as he leaned over and pulled over a colorful bouquet. “And then lunch at a fancy restaurant near campus, and then a really cute stuffed wolf--”

“He bought you a stuffed animal?” Jackson asked.

“He bought you a stuffed wolf?” Stiles laughed. “That’s so cute!”

“And then he got me a glow in the dark pop socket for my phone because I keep losing it,” Danny continued as he held his hand up, “and the last thing he gave me was a really cool ring, see?”

“I think he’s going to give him another gift when we meet up for dinner,” Lydia confided. “He’s gone into full wooing mode. It’s really sweet.”

“Shoot,” Jackson said, rubbing the back of his head. “Lydia, are you going to expect a dozen different gifts for your birthday too?”

“No,” she said sweetly, “I’ll accept one large one instead.”

Stiles laughed loudly. “Danny, it sounds like he’s really into you.” 

Danny grinned, although he looked a little embarrassed. “I think he is. And I really like him too. He’s sweet and funny and just… he’s really thoughtful.”

“And the fact that he’s super hot probably helps too,” Lydia added dryly, even though she was grinning at Danny’s expression the whole time. 

Jackson sighed. “I miss you guys.”

Lydia smiled softly at the screen. “I miss everyone too.” She glanced at Danny, “I’m glad we’re hanging out so much, but it’s still weird being with so many new people.”

“Yea,” Stiles added. “It’s weird. Nobody really talks about college as being a lonely time. But I guess that’s why so many people drink and party and do stupid shit like that.”

“Yea, like what I was doing the other night when I called all of you,” Jackson said wryly. “Asif is still making fun of me for that.”

“I’m glad you called,” Lydia said. “The time difference is so weird. And I wish… I wish we were doing this all together. We went through so much together in high school, and I would just like this all more if we were experiencing it all at the same school still.”

Stiles nodded, even though Lydia, Danny, and Jackson hadn’t experienced the most intense of his high school trials. Well… Danny had been with him when the hunters attacked in the spring… but that had been an accident.

“So I know you boys are planning a lacrosse game for Thanksgiving break,” Lydia said with a wide grin, “but I think we should have some kind of get-together on the Friday or Saturday, this way we can all actually hang out. I’ll watch you play, and all, but I want to do something that involves actual talking too.”

“And Stiles can bring Derek!” Jackson said with a grin. “Right?”

“Definitely,” Stiles laughed. “I have to prove he’s real, don’t I?”

“Maybe we can video chat as a group more often,” Danny suggested. “I know we’ve been like, pairing up, a lot to chat, but we can do this group thing more often.” 

“Yea, and the time difference sucks, but this is working out just fine, right?” Stiles said. 

“Definitely,” Jackson agreed. “I’d love if we could do this more often. Even if we’re just like, studying or writing essays together or eating or whatever.”

“Like old times,” Danny smiled. 

“We could get Scott sometimes too,” Stiles suggested. “He’s in the same time zone as Lydia and Danny.”

“And what about Allison?” Lydia said. “She’s in your time zone Stiles. I know she’s busy today, but if we give her more time to plan she can probably make it work.”

“This’ll be great,” Danny laughed, “get the whole group together on Zoom even though we’re in three different time zones.”

“It’s going to happen,” Jackson declared. “Between the four of us, we can make anything happen.”


	3. Into the Fold

“So Lydia wants to tell Jackson about all of us,” Stiles said to Laura and Derek at the breakfast table one weekend they were home in Beacon Hills in early November.

Laura paused with her fork halfway to her mouth and Derek put his mug back down on the table. 

Ben and Isaac exchanged glances across the table. “Is this like… a grown-up conversation?” Isaac asked. “Because Ben and I can leave, if you want us to.”

“No, no, of course not,” Laura said, shooting smiles at both of them. “This is a pack conversation, so of course you can be here.” She looked back at Stiles, “Is she sure?”

Stiles nodded slowly. “She wants to tell him about herself, which I get. And she thinks it’ll go over better if we tell him about everything, particularly since Danny is dating one of Vernon’s betas. Just like, rip off the band-aid, type thing.”

“How do you think he’ll respond?”

“I think he’ll freak out a little,” Stiles admitted. “But I’m also almost positive that he’ll ask for the bite.”

“You think?”

Stiles nodded. “Jackson has always wanted to be… the best. At everything. He wants to be special and powerful, and I think he’ll see the bite as a way of achieving that. But also, even more importantly, he’s always wanted family. He’s adopted, and his parents were always supportive, but… cold. They have high expectations for him and provide everything he needs to become successful, but they’ve never been loving.”

“And you think that the pack can provide the love he craves?” Derek guessed.

Stiles nodded. “Whether Danny ever wants the bite, he’s still a friend of the pack. And I’m pretty sure Lydia will accept your offer, Laura. If Jackson is kept out of the pack, I think it could break him. I’m sure he’ll be grateful to know about us, once he realizes what a big deal that is, but I also think he’ll want the bite, so that he feels like he truly belongs.” Stiles held up his hand, “I know, I know, he doesn’t actually need the bite to belong, but that’s how I’m guessing he’ll feel. And also, remember, he is on my ten-year plan.”

“You had a ten-year plan?” Isaac asked with a full mouth.

Stiles laughed and corrected, “I have a ten-year plan. It gets updated regularly.”

“What’s on your ten-year plan?” Ben asked curiously. 

Stiles held up his fingers and ticked things off as he spoke, “You going to college, for starters, a bunch of people getting married and/or having children, recruiting or biting a couple more people, preferably women so that we can balance our gender inequality, and you know, either buying or building new houses for the pack members. Those sorts of things.”

Laura reached out and wrapped an arm around Stiles’ neck and pulled him close so she could kiss his temple. “You are the best.”

“So you’re okay with it?”

“Of course. I wouldn’t try to stop Lydia anyway, because it’s her identity, and Danny is connected to two packs now, so if he wants to tell him, he’s certainly welcome to.”

“And… but you’re okay with him knowing about us?” Stiles persisted. 

Laura shook him gently before returning to her food. “Of course, Stiles. He’s on your list, so we would have told him eventually. It’s just that Lydia’s situation is speeding things up a bit. And you don’t need to worry so much… I trust you. The whole pack trusts you. If you think now is a good time, then go for it.”

*

Stiles shifted on the couch and rubbed his stomach, “I think I ate too much.”

Derek laughed and pulled Stiles closer, “Well you did seem like you were trying to single-handedly eat all of the leftover stuffing.”

Stiles groaned, “Melissa makes the best stuffing, and I only get to eat it at Thanksgiving, so I had to.” He shifted as his phone started buzzing in his pocket. “Hello, my lovely Lydia. Happy Black Friday… actually I don’t even know if that’s still a thing.”

“Hello Stiles,” Lydia said warmly. “Are you and Derek busy?”

Stiles shifted until he was sitting upright, “Not really. Why?”

“Danny and I are hanging out with Jackson at my house. We’d love it if you both would come over.”

“For the talk?” 

“Yes.”

Stiles glanced at Derek, who shrugged. “Yea, okay, we can be over in a couple minutes. Want us to bring anything?”

“No, we’ve got plenty here. We just need you for some demonstrations.”

Derek laughed as he rose from the couch, “I’ll go talk to Laura and Ben.”

Stiles ran upstairs and grabbed sweaters for both of them. He zipped up his hoodie as Derek met him by the front door. He laughed when he saw Stiles, “Really? The red one?” 

“What?” Stiles asked with a grin. 

Derek grabbed his waist and pulled him close and growled into his neck, “My what big eyes you have.”

Stiles laughed as he clutched at Derek’s shoulders, “Unhand me you beast!”

Derek leaned back to grin at Stiles. “I love you,” he said fondly, before pressing in for a quick kiss. “Let’s go though. We don’t want to keep Lydia waiting.”

“Definitely not,” Stiles agreed as he followed Derek out of the house. 

Stiles directed Derek to Lydia’s house and they parked at the end of her long driveway. Stiles rang the doorbell while Derek stepped up behind him and wrapped his arms around Stiles’ waist. “I had some plans for you tonight,” he whispered into Stiles’ ear while kissing up his neck. “I hope this doesn’t take too long.”

“It’ll be fine,” Stiles said, leaning his head back on Derek’s shoulder while they waited. “We’re just going to tell one of my most high-strung and machismo friends that he’s one of the few humans we’re friends with, and as such, that puts him near the bottom of the list of strong and powerful people. I’m sure this will be easy.”

Derek nipped at Stiles’ neck and growled softly. He lifted his head and pulled back a little the second before the front door swung open. 

Lydia opened her arms and Stiles hugged her quickly before stepping inside the house. Jackson was standing behind her, next to Danny, and he pulled Stiles in for a quick tight hug too before looking over his shoulder, “Wait, Lydia said your boyfriend was coming over, but I didn’t realize you were dating that substitute teacher from last year.”

Stiles laughed as Derek stepped away from Lydia’s hug, “Nice to meet you Jackson.”

“We’ve known each other for years, before he started subbing,” Stiles explained, shooting Derek a grin before pulling Danny in for a quick hug. “How were your flights? And your Thanksgiving dinners? It’s weird, when we were across the country I think we talked more than we have in the past few days even though we’ve all been in Beacon Hills again.”

Lydia laughed, “Our flights were all good, except Jackson is suffering some jetlag. Come on, let’s go into the living room. I’ve got snacks and things all set up.”

Jackson grinned ruefully, “Part of me wants to correct her and say I’m fine… except this eight hour difference sucks. It was easier going there and adjusting, but coming back has been tough.”

Danny patted Jackson’s shoulders, “I’d say you’ll adjust soon… but I know you’re just going back in a few days, so…”

“I know,” Jackson laughed, rubbing the back of his neck as he fell onto the couch. “You guys drove up, right?” He glanced at Derek, “Lydia said you’re living together in Stanford? That’s awesome that you were able to get a job down there.”

Derek grinned and nodded, “Yea, I think the stars aligned or something, because it’s been great.”

Stiles squeezed Derek’s thigh, “It has been great. We only started dating a few months ago, but we’ve known each other for years. I was honestly kind of nervous about, you know, the transition from friends to boyfriends, but…” Stiles shrugged. “We figured it out pretty well.”

“That’s awesome,” Danny said with a grin. “I saw how well you guys worked together in the spring, so I’m glad you figured it all out.”

Stiles and Derek exchanged smiles. 

“As adorable as you two are,” Lydia said with a small smile, “Jackson, sweetheart, I invited Stiles and Derek over because I want to tell you something, and I think their presence will help.”

Jackson looked suspiciously between the four other people. “This isn’t like… an intervention or something is it?”

Danny laughed and leaned over to pat Jackson’s back, “No, dude, we promise.”

“When Danny and I were in Boston,” Lydia started, drawing everyone’s attention to her, “we were approached by a pack of werewolves.” She paused to give Jackson a chance to react. 

He scoffed, but then looked around at the rest of the group, who were all watching him carefully, “Wait, this isn’t a joke?”

“No,” Lydia answered. “And that introduction opened up my eyes to a whole community of supernatural people… to which I apparently belong.”

Jackson’s eyes widened. “You? But… you’re a werewolf?”

“No… I am a banshee,” Laura admitted, “which means that I can sense and predict death, and also a bunch of other things.”

Jackson stared at her for several breaths before inhaling sharply through his nose, “Okay. I… I don’t know what…” He glanced at Danny. “Are you… something too?”

Danny shook his head with a wry grin, “Completely human.”

Jackson nodded several times before his eyes widened and he turned to stare at Stiles and Derek. “You?”

“Derek’s a werewolf,” Stiles said softly. “And I have magic. Want to see?”

Jackson swallowed and nodded again. 

Derek slowly let the blue shine through his eyes. Jackson gasped and flinched slightly, but gathered himself quickly. 

“What… what else can you do?”

Derek leaned forward and held out his clawed hand. “I also have fangs,” he said softly, and Stiles smiled at the way his voice always sounded different when he was in the beta shift. “And heightened senses, strength, stamina, speed, and healing.”

“Whoa,” Jackson breathed out as he took Derek’s offered hand and inspected the nails. “And… this is real? Like… you guys aren’t just pulling some elaborate prank on me?”

Stiles held out his hands and levitated the bowl of chips across the table, placing it closer to Jackson. Then he called up his _lumos_ ball and tossed it to Danny, who caught it with a grin. 

Lydia leaned closer, “I haven’t actually seen that in person yet. Danny, can I have it? Is it really corporeal?”

“It is,” Stiles said, gesturing for Danny to pass it to Lydia. 

She took it in both her hands and studied it, turning it from side to side. “Can you still affect it?”

As his answer, Stiles focused and made the light grow smaller and dimmer, before growing brighter, and then taking on a blue shade. 

“You alright Jackson?” Stiles asked softly. “Did we break you?”

Jackson nodded several times, his hand covering the bottom half of his face, before realizing what he was doing and shaking his head. “No, no, I’m good. Not broken. Just… processing.” He took another deep breath before pointing at Derek. “You are a werewolf.” Derek nodded and Jackson turned to point at Stiles. “And you are a…?”

“A Spark,” Stiles answered. “Although there are other magic users too.”

“A Spark,” Jackson echoed. Then he turned to Lydia, “And you’re a… banshee?” Lydia nodded. “And Danny… you and me are just… regular humans?” Danny laughed and nodded. “Okay. Okay. Werewolves are real. And magic is real. And… what else is real? Who else is… like you guys?”

“We have a pack,” Derek said in his regular voice, having shifted back to human. “So there are several other werewolves. You remember Isaac?” Jackson nodded. “He joined the pack during his senior year.”

Jackson turned to point at Stiles again, “That’s when you guys were dating. Wait. How is that not weird? He’s still in your… pack?”

Stiles laughed and patted Derek’s leg, “How is that always everyone’s first question?” 

“Because they don’t understand the pack bonds,” Derek replied, leaning over to kiss Stiles briefly. “Isaac isn’t just like… Stiles’ ex, he’s part of the pack, which is the most important thing. Plus, he’s like a brother to me.”

“Also, I hooked up with him for like, a couple weeks, and that was over two years ago. We’ve been pack for a lot longer than we were hooking up.” Stiles shrugged. “Plus, we weren’t really ever even dating. We were just hooking up because it was fun and convenient.”

Jackson just stared at Stiles for a few more seconds before squinting and then shrugging. “Whatever. If it’s not weird for you guys then it’s none of my business, really. And…” he glanced at Derek before continuing, “you said Isaac joined the pack… like… he became a werewolf too?”

Derek nodded. “My sister and I were born werewolves. Most of our family was. But Laura is the Alpha, which means she has the power to bite people and turn them into werewolves. We’ve added five new werewolves to the pack in the past couple years.”

Jackson nodded a few times. “Since you’re telling me all this… does that mean that I could be part of the pack too? Like I could maybe become a werewolf too?”

Stiles punched the air and grinned widely at Derek, “See? I told you.” At Jackson’s confused and hurt look, Stiles reached over to pat his arm, “No, no, don’t be upset, please. I just… I knew you’d want the bite. I told Laura that I thought you’d ask for it.” 

“You’ll have to talk to Laura,” Derek said. “And meet the whole pack. And even if Laura says yes, the rest of the pack gets a vote too. We like the decisions to be unanimous.”

Jackson’s eyes widened in alarm, so Stiles added, “But Jackson there’s no rush. We have video chatting and everything, plus you’ll be back for the holiday break in like, a month, and that one is longer, so you’ll have time to meet everyone then.”

“I’m going to visit Laura tomorrow,” Lydia said, speaking up for the first time in a few minutes. “You should come with me, Jackson.”

“You are? Why?”

Lydia shrugged. “Laura helped with some of the werewolves in Boston and she used her contacts to find me another banshee to help train me. I want to thank her in person.”

“Oh,” Jackson said, “wait, you need training? For what?”

Lydia nodded, “I can explain later. It all sounds very dramatic, but it really isn’t, but my friend Angelina, the one I’ve told you about a bunch, she’s actually a banshee too, and she’s been teaching me things.”

Jackson nodded a few more times, his eyes still wide. He took a big sigh. “Okay. Okay. This is normal. This isn’t weird at all. Werewolves. And banshees. And… Sparks. I’m not freaking out at all.”

Lydia laughed softly. “I know you are. But that’s okay, babe. This is a kind of big and scary thing… and I only learned about it a few weeks ago, but I want you to be part of it, since it’s part of my life now.”

“And mine,” Danny added. 

“And mine,” Stiles echoed. 

“You can freak out,” Danny said. “And you can ask questions. God knows I was texting and calling Stiles nonstop when I first found out.”

“And then I did the same thing,” Lydia added. “Although I think I split my questions between Stiles and Laura.” She reached out and laced her fingers with his. “I wanted to tell you last month. Well, honestly I wanted to tell you as soon as I found out, but I was kind of in panic mode for the first few weeks. Once it all started to settle down a bit, and I could think straight, I decided I wanted to tell you.”

“But… but you didn’t,” Jackson protested.

“I wanted to wait until I could do it in person,” she said kindly. “I didn’t want to tell you while you were an ocean away and Danny and Stiles couldn’t be here to back me up.”

“And you can ask any of us any questions,” Stiles said. “Or you could call Scott. He knows too.”

“How come he knows?” Jackson asked, pouting slightly. 

“Because he was bit by a werewolf a couple years ago,” Stiles answered. “But it wasn’t an Alpha, so he didn’t change, but we had to tell him.” Stiles shrugged and laughed hoarsely. “Honestly, that was the night I found out about werewolves too, and it was all a bit of a shock.”

“Who… who else knows? Like, from our friends group.”

“Allison,” Stiles answered, “although she’s only known for like… a year. And Boyd and Erica, from Isaac’s grade, they’re also part of the pack.”

“Oh and Kira,” Danny added. “She’s a… what is she again?”

“A kitsune,” Derek answered. “She’s a fox shapeshifter, and she has lightning powers too, although she isn’t fully trained yet.”

“So… just about everyone we’re friends with. They all know.” 

Lydia pursed her lips. “Well I didn’t know until two months ago, when an Alpha werewolf cornered me and Danny.”

“And I really only found out a few months ago,” Danny pointed out. “Honestly, we were the last three to find out.”

“And Jackson, here, look at this,” Stiles said, pulling a folded paper out of his pocket. 

“What is it?” Jackson said as he took the paper and unfolded it.

“That’s part of my ten-year plan for the pack,” Stiles explained, before glancing at Derek. “I’ve never actually shown the whole written thing to anyone besides you and Laura, have I?”

Derek shook his head. “I know you’ve discussed it with Isaac before.”

“Why is my name here?” Jackson asked.

“Because you’re part of the plan,” Stiles answered. “I always hoped that you and Lydia and Danny would be part of the pack someday. But I didn’t want to rush anything, and I wanted everyone to go to college and you know, start to figure out what you want to do with your lives.”

“What if I want to live in Boston? Or New York? Or even London?” Lydia asked. “Laura said I could still be pack, but I don’t understand how that would work honestly.”

Derek shrugged. “Sometimes pack members leave, sometimes they come back, and sometimes they just don’t live together. Pack is… well in a way it’s like family, but… more. We had an aunt and uncle and two cousins who lived in Seattle, but they were still pack.” At Stiles’ look of confusion, Derek added, “They were visiting during the fire.”

Stiles squeezed Derek’s hand and Derek smiled faintly at him. 

“Would you tell us about the pack?” Lydia asked. “Danny told me a little about Isaac, Boyd, and Erica, but I’d like to know about the other people too.”

“Of course,” Stiles said, redirecting his attention back to them. “Do you remember when Erica fell off that rock-climbing wall back when we were in sophomore year?”


	4. Pack Bonds

Laura was standing on the steps of the porch as Lydia parked her car. She held her arms open for Lydia as the trio walked toward her. “Welcome. It’s so good to officially meet you in person,” 

Lydia returned the grin as she stepped into Laura’s hug. 

“You know Danny,” she said with a gesture, “and this is Jackson, my boyfriend.”

“We told Jackson last night,” Danny said as he stepped in for a hug too. “Stiles and Derek came over and helped.”

“They told me.” Laura nodded and raised an eyebrow at Jackson, “How are you feeling?”

Jackson laughed shortly and rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, I kind of freaked out last night… but I’m feeling a little bit better now, I think.” He dropped his arm, “Derek said you’d consider biting me? If I asked nicely?”

Laura chuckled, “We’ll definitely consider it, if you want the bite. But we wouldn’t do it this weekend anyway.”

“Why not?” 

“It wouldn’t be responsible,” Laura said as she gestured for the trio to follow her into the house. “Newly bitten werewolves can often have control problems, and we like to spend the first few full moons together as a pack to help develop control. After that, you would have the option to do whatever you want, as long as you’re in control of your shifts.”

“What would happen if I lost control?” Jackson asked as he sat down at the kitchen island next to Danny and Lydia. 

Laura offered them the pot of coffee, to which Danny and Lydia nodded, but Jackson shook his head. “You’d pose a danger to yourself and people around you. As your Alpha, I would be able to help you gain your control back again, but if you’re in London I won’t be able to do anything other than talk to you, which isn’t optimal.”

Jackson nodded before looking down at his folded hands. “You’d really consider me? Stiles and Derek explained how important pack is, and Danny told me about the hunters and how you all united to take care of each other… but why would you consider me? You don’t know me.”

Laura leaned on the counter across from Jackson. “Did they tell you about how we chose Isaac? Or Erica?” Jackson shook his head. “It was Stiles. Almost everyone in our pack is connected to Stiles. In the beginning, we were looking for people who were loners, who maybe didn’t have good family supports, or, like Erica, had preexisting health concerns that the bite could help. But as much as we wanted to pick the right people,” Laura explained, “we also needed the strength that came with numbers. We were so small we barely counted as a pack in the beginning, when it was just Derek and me. And for a while, that’s what we wanted. We were just getting by, but we were also under other pack’s radars. But then we got Stiles, and we had the chance to build a real pack. ”

“So… now that you have a real pack, are you more or less picky?”

Laura laughed. “We were always picky. We just rushed a bit in the beginning. My plan was to bite one or two people the first year, but instead I bit five.”

“Shit,” Danny said. “I know about Isaac, Erica, and Boyd, but who else?”

“Erica’s mom, Cynthia, and her brother, James.”

Jackson turned to look at Lydia, who hadn’t spoken since they came in. “Babe, you haven’t said anything in a while. What are you thinking?”

“Why are you being so honest with us?” Lydia asked, leaning forward toward Laura. “Even last night, Stiles and Derek were a lot more open about things than Vernon’s pack has been, even Danny’s boyfriend has been kind of closed-mouthed about a lot of things.”

Laura grinned. “Because we want you,” she said pointedly. “And because Stiles said the three of you are a package deal, and because everything that Stiles has told me about you,” she said, turning to Jackson, “indicates that you would be an asset to our pack.” She glanced at Danny, “You know you’re welcome to the bite if you ever want it.” 

Danny nodded and shrugged. “Vernon said as much too, although he said he wouldn’t bite me without talking to you first, since I’m sort of your pack too. I’m not sure I even want the bite though.”

“Why do you want Lydia so bad?” Jackson asked. 

“I told you,” Lydia said with a sigh, “I’m a special kind of magic. That’s why I’ve been video chatting with Laura the past few weeks, to see what she knows about my type of magic.”

Laura nodded. “She’s a banshee, and once she finishes her training, she’ll be very powerful. She would be a huge asset to the pack. And also, Stiles wants her.”

Jackson choked, “But I thought--”

Laura held her hand up and interrupted Jackson with a laugh, “Not like that. Stiles wants her because he thinks their magics will work well together, that they could almost… amplify one another.”

Jackson looked down at his hands for a moment. Lydia and Danny turned to study him quietly. Eventually he looked back up at Laura, “So you don’t actually want me at all, do you? You’re just willing to accept me to get Lydia and Danny? I’m just like… acceptable baggage?”

Laura reached out and placed her hands over Jackson’s. “No. I know I don’t know you well yet, but Stiles vouched for you, and so did most of the rest of the pack.”

“Really?”

Laura nodded as she leaned back and sipped her coffee. “Isaac said that you were kind of a dick sometimes, but that you never pushed anyone too hard when you were the lacrosse captain. And Boyd said that when he left lacrosse you talked to him, but you weren’t too pushy or anything.”

“Yea, I tried to convince him to join the team again,” Jackson remembered. “But it didn’t work. He didn’t listen.”

“I don’t want you for your persuasive abilities,” Laura replied with a grin. “But you reached out to Boyd, who didn’t have many other friends at the time, to make sure that he was alright. Remember? He said you offered to cover the cost of the uniform if that was what was keeping him from the team.”

“You did?” Danny asked with a laugh. “Dude we’ve talked about this. You don’t always have to make yourself look like a dick. You’re allowed to let people know that you’re actually nice.”

“I know, it’s just easier that way sometimes,” Jackson retorted, looking sullen. 

“And Erica said one time when she had a seizure after school in middle school, you stayed with her and the nurse until she was okay again,” Laura added kindly. “Cynthia says that you were one of the reasons Erica felt comfortable going back to school after that.”

Jackson shrugged. “I couldn’t just leave her.”

Lydia rubbed his back, “Jackson, sweetheart, you’re a good person. We know that you don’t usually like other people to see that, but you are.”

“And also,” Danny added, “it’s not like Laura’s looking for some kind of angelic saint. Stiles, Erica, and Isaac are all sarcastic shits sometimes.” 

Laura nodded in agreement, her eyebrows doing a complicated dance. “Jackson, we're not making any promises yet. But enough members of the pack have agreed to let you in that the rest want to get to know you.”

“But… maybe I could eventually have the bite?” 

“Maybe at the beginning of summer? If you still want it. That way, we could spend each full moon together before you go back to school.”

“What… what do I have to do… like, prove that I deserve to be in the pack?”

Laura laughed, “You don’t have to prove anything. We just have to see if you fit with the rest of the pack.” She reached out to hold his hand again, “And if, for whatever reason, you don’t fit, or you don’t want to join our pack, I can talk with other Alphas to find a pack that you would like better. If you still want the bite, I’ll help you out, even if you don’t want to join our pack.”

Jackson pulled back a little, “You’d help me, even if I don’t want to join your pack?”

“Yea,” Laura said. “Now that you know about us, you’re part of the supernatural community, even if you aren’t technically supernatural yourself. Danny is a friend of the pack. That’s a respected position. Remember how he said that Vernon, the Alpha of the pack near his school in Boston, offered him the bite, but would only do it after talking to me?” Jackson nodded. “Danny’s free to join whatever pack he wants, but he’s also under my protection. Then there’s people like Allison and Scott. They’re fully human, and don’t plan on taking the bite anytime soon, but they’re still part of the pack. Officially. But they could also join a different pack someday if they wanted to. Hell,” Laura said, throwing her hands up, “Even Stiles and Derek could leave and join a different pack if they wanted, although I’m not really sure what I would do with myself if they did.” Laura glanced up at the ceiling and then laughed. 

“What?” Jackson asked.

Laura pointed at the ceiling. “Derek just called me a moron for even entertaining the idea of them leaving my pack.”

“What? They’re here?”

“Why haven’t they come down to say hi?” Lydia demanded.

Laura shrugged. “They probably didn’t realize you were here. I’m pretty sure they were having sex.” At the looks of surprise on their faces, Laura explained, “All the werewolves have heightened senses. I’m sure they covered that last night?” Jackson nodded. “Stiles uses his magic to put a silence spell on their room whenever they have sex. Or, at least that’s what I assume. They could be doing anything, for all I know.” She laughed again, “Then come down here you morons, it’s not going to be any less awkward in half an hour.”

“Who else is here?” Jackson asked, looking around the kitchen as if someone might jump out from somewhere.

“Ben,” Laura answered. “He’s an eleven year old that we adopted. He lives with Stiles and Derek. He’s up in his room playing video games.”

“I thought you said he lives with Stiles and Derek though, and aren’t they living by Stanford?”

Laura nodded, “But the house is big enough that they have bedrooms here too. Isaac and James live here too, but they’re both out.”

“Your pack has a lot of guys in it,” Danny pointed out. 

Laura sighed deeply. “Don’t I know it. Luckily Allison, Erica, and her mom can more than hold their own.”

“I did promise you I’d be on the lookout for some women,” Stiles said with a wide grin as he walked into the room. “Jackson, my man, I’m glad you came to meet Laura.”

“You are?” Jackson said as he accepted Stiles’ hug. He patted awkwardly at Stiles’ back. 

“I am,” Stiles said with a grin as he bowed extravagantly to Lydia, “my queen.” She grinned and held her hand out so Stiles could place a kiss to her knuckles. Then he turned to Danny, who gladly returned his hug. 

Lydia waved her open arms at Derek, “Come here too, I know you want to get in on this too.”

“I don’t want to make you guys uncomfortable,” he said as he stepped closer. 

Lydia pulled him into a hug, “Oh hush. Since we’re all likely to be pack, we’ll get used to it.”

“You’re going to accept Laura’s offer?” Derek asked with wide eyes. 

“Yes, I believe so,” Lydia said with a prim smile. “There are very few people in this world who I would trust to make decisions about my future… but I think that Stiles is one of them.”

“But… but I still don’t get why,” Jackson complained. “He lied to us through most of high school, and it kind of sounds like he only told Danny after almost getting him shot and you only found out after some random Alpha cornered you. Stiles, I mean no offense, and I’m so glad to know about things now, but… I still don’t get it.”

Stiles reached his hand out to Jackson. When Jackson didn’t return his hand, Stiles shook his somewhat impatiently, “Dude come on, give me your hand.” Jackson finally complied and Stiles placed his other hand on top. “Look at this,” Stiles closed his eyes and used the spell to make the pack bonds flowing out of him temporarily visible. The golden bonds between himself and Laura and Derek shone brightly, the thickest of all of the lines connecting to his chest. There was another, almost as thick, bond traveling up into the ceiling that he knew connected to Ben. Other bonds of varying thickness faded as they led out of the house, and Stiles knew that they connected to each of the pack members. 

Jackson poked gently at the three thin strings that led to Danny, Lydia, and Jackson themselves. “This is real?” 

Stiles nodded, “It’s real to me, and that means I make it real. Laura’s bonds look a little different, because she hasn’t known you guys for years.”

“You can show my bonds now too?” Laura asked, her eyebrows raised. 

“I can do Derek’s,” Stiles replied with a wry grin. “Want to try for the first time with an audience?” 

Laura laughed and held out both her hands. Stiles stepped around the island and took them both in his hands. He glanced at Derek, who gave him a thumbs up. Stiles closed his eyes and focused first on the bond between himself and Laura. Next he felt for the bond reaching out to Derek, and then to Ben. After finding the nearest, strongest bonds, he was able to feel out the other bonds as well. He opened his eyes and laughed softly at the glowing red lines that spread out from Laura. 

Stiles was a little surprised to see that his bond with Laura was almost as strong as her bond with Derek, and that there was a spidery thin bond reaching out toward Lydia and Danny. He and Laura grinned at each other over the bonds before they released each other’s hands and Stiles let the magic sustaining the bonds fade away. 

Jackson pursed his lips and stared down at the counter for a moment before looking up and grinning, “So I noticed the yard out back is really big. Think we could have our lacrosse game out there?”

Laura grinned widely, “I think that sounds like a great plan.”


	5. Field Day

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> An after Christmas gathering...

“Didn’t you all leave like… twelve hours ago?” Laura laughed as she walked onto the porch with a mug of coffee and surveyed most of her pack as they milled around the backyard area. “Are we celebrating Boxing Day or something?” 

“No,” Erica said with a wide grin. “But we decided to have a field day since it’s so nice out today!”

“A field day?” Laura questioned, looking around at all of the different people.

“Yea, with racing and feats of strength and things like that,” Isaac explained. “And Allison’s going to do some demonstrations with her bow, and Lydia and Stiles can do some, like, magic stuff.”

“I think everyone wants to show off for Jackson,” Stiles added with a grin. 

“Well, I for one want one last chance to beat Jackson in a race,” Isaac said, throwing an arm over Jackson’s shoulders. “Once he gets the bite, he’ll go back to smoking the rest of us like he did in high school.”

Jackson pushed at Isaac but grinned as he said, “So you’re acknowledging that you can only win when the playing field is tilted in your favor?”

“Hell, yes,” Isaac laughed, pushing at Jackson’s side while still holding him close by the shoulders. Jackson laughed as he tried to squirm out from under Isaac’s hold. 

“So who’s up first?” Laura asked, taking another sip of her coffee. 

“How about you guys run some races?” Stiles suggested, “And then you can all try to come at me? I won’t put any wards around myself. I’ll only push people individually. And if anyone can actually get to me… I don’t know… they’ll will be the winner.”

“You think you can stop all of them?” Jackson asked, “Really?”

Stiles chuckled and rubbed his hands together, “I’m not sure actually. I’ve never tried with more than three people at a time. But I want to try.”

“You’re going from three people to…” Jackson looked around the clearing quickly, “seven?”

Stiles’ grin widened. “Well, there are seven werewolves here, sure, but the rest of you are more than welcome to try. Just, Allison, you can’t try shooting me. I’m not ready for a full group attack with projectiles just yet.” 

Allison laughed from across the yard where she was setting up her targets. “Can I join the pack trying to tackle you?”

“Wait humans can go at you too?” Jackson asked, eyes wide.

“Hell yes,” Erica answered. “We need strength in numbers right now. Stiles can take any one of us down no problem, whether we’re a wolf or a human. Jackson, that means you’re in for all of this.”

Jackson grinned and clapped his hands together. “Alright then, let’s go.”

Stiles watched as the betas all raced. Isaac insisted Jackson and Scott join them, even though they came in last each time. When Jackson started to complain, Erica jumped on his back causing him to stagger to the side slightly before he balanced himself and braced her legs. “Come on, Jackson,” Erica said with a laugh as he started walking toward Stiles. “Isaac was right. Once you’re one of us, you’ll definitely beat everyone… except for maybe Isaac. He might still beat you even then because he’s the fastest. And you beat Scott each time. That has to count for something, right?”

Jackson was grinning widely when he stopped next to Stiles and Laura and Erica hopped off his back. “Stiles, you ready?”

Stiles grinned and rubbed his hands together again before walking out into the middle of the yard. “Everyone else ready?” 

Erica bounced on her toes for a minute. “How many tries do we get each?” 

Laura pointed at her phone where it was propped on the deck beside her. “I have a five minute timer. How does that sound?” Stiles nodded. “On the count of three, everyone?” Laura looked around at the general nods from everyone. “Three…” 

Stiles braced himself and made eye contact with Derek across the yard. He was grinning, with one hand on Ben’s shoulder. Stiles knew that they were excited about this because they were the ones who most often trained with Stiles and wanted to see how he would do with more people to focus on. 

“Two…”

Stiles glanced over at Isaac and Jackson, who were both braced to start running from the opposite side of the yard. Stiles expected that they’d be the first to reach him and Stiles focused on Boyd and Erica and wondered if he could throw Isaac or Jackson back into the two of them. 

“One!” Laura shouted, holding back for a few seconds as the rest of the younger pack members ran at Stiles. 

He threw one arm out and caught at Jackson with his spark and levitated him, throwing him backwards into Boyd, who caught him and tumbled to the ground. Isaac shouted with a wide grin and jumped at Stiles. He caught him in midair and threw him in the opposite direction. Stiles knew that the wolves were amazing at all physical activities, but he was still glad to see Isaac pop up a second after he tumbled to the ground. 

Next, Kira and Allison ran at him from opposite directions at the same time. He threw up boundaries in front of both of them and grinned when they both crashed into them. Then he pushed them backwards and spun as Isaac, Boyd, Derek, and Ben ran at him at the same time. He tossed Ben, knowing he would land on his feet because they joked that the kid was half cat instead of half wolf.

Derek dodged around Ben and jumped at Stiles at the same time as Isaac and Boyd. Stiles pushed at Derek while throwing one bigger gust of magic toward Isaac and Boyd. They both flew back and Stiles grinned. Served them right for being so close to one another. 

Stiles looked up and saw Allison and Kira getting ready to run again while gesturing at Jackson and Ben on his other side. He bent his knees to prepare for them, and then felt the air gush out of his body as he got hit from behind. 

Laura wrapped her arms around him as they flew through the air, and she shifted slightly so that when they crashed to the ground, Stiles fell on top of her. 

Stiles grinned down at her and lifted his head at the sound of cheering around them. 

“How did you sneak up on me?” Stiles asked as he rolled off Laura and sat up. 

She grinned widely as she sat up too. “I’ve been working on that, as a bit of a surprise.” At Stiles’ raised eyebrows, she laughed and continued. “My mom had been training me to be an Alpha before the fire, and I kind of ignored all of her lessons while we were in New York. We were mostly too focused on surviving and healing… it wasn’t until after we rebuilt everything that I even thought about her old lessons.”

“And one of them was about being super sneaky?” Stiles asked, grinning up at the pack as they gathered around the pair. 

Derek reached down and pulled up both Laura and Stiles, slipping his arm around Stiles’ waist as he looped the other arm around Laura’s shoulders. 

“I’ve been practicing hiding my aura,” Laura admitted. “As well as a few other things.”

“Shit,” Stiles said as his eyes widened, “Laura that’s a big deal!”

She grinned and glanced down at her feet. “The idea is that I’ll be able to defend the territory more effectively. I can also make my aura more powerful too, but that’s not particularly enjoyable for any of the betas around me. It’s more of an intimidation tactic, so I only practice that sometimes, and only when everyone is farther away.”

Jackson reached out and punched Stiles’ shoulder, “Hey how’d you know Boyd was going to catch me, by the way?”

Boyd chuckled and answered before Stiles could, “He didn’t really give me a whole lot of choice in the matter.”

“How did I do, though?” Stiles asked, looking around. “I didn’t hurt anyone, did I?”

Erica laughed, “Of course you were focusing on not hurting us. Sitles! You were supposed to be taking us out.”

“I know,” Stiles said with a shrug. “I was. But I didn’t want to hurt anyone, or like, throw one of the wolves into a human and hurt them on accident. But was anyone counting? I was too focused to pay attention.”

“You knocked down nine people,” Kira said with a grin. “Or… you knocked down people nine times. There were a couple repeats.”

“And you were definitely going to take the three of us out,” Allison said with a laugh. 

“Coming at me in multiples definitely makes it harder,” Stiles admitted. 

Ben pushed through the group and hugged Stiles. “You were amazing. I liked seeing you throw other people through the air, instead of just me and Derek.” Stiles grinned and wrapped an arm around Ben’s shoulders. 

Erica laughed, “I know. It was so amazing. Stiles, you are genuinely so scary!”

Stiles froze and bit his lip. That’s what Ben had said after he had stopped Ennis single-handedly. Stiles glanced at Derek, who squeezed him tightly and pressed a kiss to his cheek. 

“Kira,” Derek said, looking at her quickly to change the subject, “Scott said you wanted to show off some of your fox-fire?”

Kira’s eyes lit up and she nodded. “I do! I’ve been practicing a lot.”

“Wait,” Jackson asked, pointing at Kira, “is that browser, Firefox, is that what you are?”

Kira laughed and spun her arms, trailing fire from her hands in a spiraling motion. “Just watch,” she said with a grin before spinning to do more moves.

*

Later, after dinner, they all made themselves comfortable in the living room. 

“So one of the things that Angelica has been explaining is that eventually I’ll be able to learn how to sense a person’s lifeline, like, how and when they’ll die, even if it’s a long lifeline." Lydia sighed dramatically, "I don’t think I’m good at it yet, because either none of you are going to die anytime soon or I’m terrible at it.”

“Lydia, my goddess, you’ve never been terrible at anything in your life,” Stiles said with a grin as he leaned against Derek’s chest, “so obviously that means you’re doing a great job, and we’re all going to live to be nonagenarians.”

“Weres in stable packs can often live well past 100,” Derek said with a small smile as he pressed a kiss to Stiles’ temple, “and based on the fact that Araceli talks about Texas joining the United States as… recent history, I’m going to guess that Sparks have longer lifespans too.”

“What?” Stiles spluttered, pulling himself away so he could sit up and turn to look at Derek.

“My mom’s almost a thousand,” Kira said with a shrug. “I know kitsune are much more long-lived than other supernatural folk, but she said that most of us have longer lifespans than humans simply because we heal better.”

“Our great-grandma was 126 when she died in the fire,” Laura said as she came into the room. “And she was still pretty spry.”

“No, I think she was 127,” Derek disagreed. “Didn’t we have her birthday party with Brian and Uncle Peter just a few weeks before?”

“Oh shit… I think you’re right.”

“Who was Brian?” Ben asked.

Derek and Laura both stilled before glancing at each other. Ben shot a look to Stiles that was half-panicked. There was an unspoken agreement amongst the pack not to ask too many questions about Laura and Derek’s family because it hurt them too much to talk about them most of the time. 

“He was our younger brother,” Derek said finally. “My only brother, before…” he glanced at Isaac and smiled faintly. Isaac reached over and squeezed Derek’s arm. They smiled at each other for a few seconds before Derek turned to look at Ben with a wider smile, "And now I have a whole pack."

Ben grinned back at Derek before climbing to sit beside him on the couch. 

There was silence for a few seconds before Derek turned back to Lydia, “I would suggest trying your new skills on a human… but right now all you’ve got are Jackson, Allison, and Scott.”

Lydia waved at Jackson, “No. All three of their futures are too unclear.”

“Why do you think that is?” Jackson asked, turning toward Laura. 

She shrugged, “It’s probably because your futures are tied with the pack.” She pointed at him, “If you don’t take the bite, then your lifespan will probably be shorter, like, just a normal human lifespan. But if you do take the bite, which is the general plan, then you’re likely to live longer. It’s just that there’s no guarantee right now.”

Jackson nodded, before asking, “And Allison and Scott?”

They both shrugged. “We haven’t decided,” Allison responded. “Scott said he’ll probably take the bite after he finishes vet school, and I’ve been on the fence about it for a while. My parents, or, at the very least my mom wouldn’t get it. I think my dad would be okay with it… but I’m not sure my mom ever would. But at the same time…” she turned to look lovingly at Isaac, who took hold of her hand while she spoke, “I know I’m part of the pack regardless, but… I just haven’t decided.”

“So it’s just the possibility that makes it harder to read?” Jackson asked, looking at Lydia this time. 

“I think so,” she answered, “although I’m still far from an expert on the subject.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Allison wants the bite! And her mom is NOT HAPPY about it... (also it's been taking me longer to finish this story because I've already started the next one which is more Argent-centered and I'm so excited about obliterating Kate)
> 
> But also... they're kind of just one big happy pack and I want them all to just be happy forever.


	6. Back to Beacon Hills for the Bite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Brief descriptions of blood... but nothing graphic.

“So Isaac and I are going to drive down tomorrow, alright?” Jackson asked.

Stiles nodded as he propped his phone up on this laptop screen and switched tabs to double check the citation he was including in his references page. “I have my last class on Thursday, but Derek and Ben will be able to help you pack and load everything up. You’re going to be taking Isaac’s CRV, right?”

Jackson laughed loudly, “No, Stiles, I’m going to drive my Porsche to help you move back home. I should be able to fit... about two duffel bags in the back. That’ll be helpful, right?”

Stiles grinned wryly as he rubbed at his forehead. “Alright, yea, obviously you’ll be taking Isaac’s car. I’m sorry. I’ve had three finals in the past two days and I still have two more papers due before we leave.”

“I’m sorry,” Jackson responded instantly. “I can talk with Derek about scheduling and details. Do you want to go?”

“No, no, no,” Stiles said, turning to look at Jackson more fully. “I’m excited about coming home and seeing everyone. I like how Stanford does the trimester thing, but it’s been kind of frustrating these last few weeks with everyone else being home and us still being here.”

“Yea,” Jackson nodded, “that’s pretty much how I felt whenever you would come home for a weekend and post pictures around town. But I know it’s different now, since Scott and Kira are here too.” They were silent for a moment. “I’m sorry, dude. But you’ll be home by this weekend!”

“Yea, that’ll be really nice,” Stiles sighed, before sitting up straighter and grinning. “And then next Wednesday is the new moon.”

Jackson beamed. “It is.”

“And you get to officially join the ranks of the supernatural,” Stiles grinned at his phone. 

“I keep half-expecting Laura to change her mind,” Jackson admitted. “I don’t know why I can accept that werewolves are real, but I’m having trouble accepting that Laura would actually want me in her pack.”

“It’s because you’re what Cynthia calls ‘one of Laura’s sad puppies’,” Stiles chuckled. “Jackson, part of why Laura wants you is because she knows you’ll be good for the pack, even if you don’t believe it, but also the pack is good for you, and it’s going to be even better once you can feel the bonds. I promise, bro, they’re there and they’re real.”

Jackson grinned and rubbed his hair gently. “I can’t wait to feel them, like everyone says.”

*

Stiles grinned as he parked in front of the house. Ben was sitting on Isaac’s shoulders while they both carried boxes to the car parked in the driveway. 

“Ben, are you carrying that or just resting it on Isaac’s head?” Stiles called as he climbed out of his Jeep. 

Ben laughed and Isaac said, “I think I’m doing most of the work, honestly. I’m not entirely sure how I got roped into carrying multiple boxes and a child.” Isaac tried to glance up at Ben, but instead just shifted the box around. “Do you even still count as a child? Are you a tween now?”

“I don’t know. But I wanted to be tall,” Ben said with a mischievous grin.

“Well, you certainly are,” Stiles said with a grin as he met them at the open trunk of Isaac’s car. Stiles reached up and took the box off Isaac’s head and put it in the trunk. “In fact, you’re so tall I can’t actually hug you now.”

Isaac ducked down and Stiles lifted Ben off his shoulders before pulling him into a hug. Isaac wrapped his arms around the pair and asked, “So how does it feel to officially be done with your first year of Stanford?”

“Good,” Stiles sighed. “Although I start my online summer classes next week.”

“Yea, but you’ll be home in Beacon Hills,” Jackson said with a grin as he walked up. He put a large suitcase into the backseat before coming over and slinging an arm over Stiles’ shoulders. “Come on, you can sit down for a couple minutes to relax,” he said as he steered Stiles toward the house, “but then you get to help us pack things up. I don’t know how the three of you accumulated so much stuff.”

“I swear it’s because you all kept bringing things down for the weekends and then leaving them here,” Derek said with a grin from the front door. “Hey babe,” he said as Stiles stepped out from under Jackson’s arm so they could kiss. 

“I mean, they started doing it so you’d always have some things that smelled like pack,” Stiles pointed out as he wrapped his arms around Derek’s waist, pressing in for another kiss.

Derek rubbed his nose on the side of Stiles’ head. “Come on in. Someone needs to finish all the ice cream in the freezer.”

“Oooooh and I think we have some frozen curly fries too!” Stiles said as he stepped into the house and froze, inhaling deeply. “Wait you made the fries already?”

Derek chuckled as he pushed Stiles through the doorway so everyone else could follow them in. “They’re in the oven now.”

*

Stiles clapped Jackson on the back as he breathed deeply and looked around at the yard and the house. “Just imagine, tomorrow you’ll be able to actually outpace me,” Stiles said with a grin. 

Jackson swallowed and closed his water bottle before tossing it toward his bag. “I still can’t believe how fast you are now,” he said. “I mean, I know you made first line eventually, but… I always kind of thought you were slower.”

Stiles shrugged. “Well, I have been going running pretty regularly for the past three years, and most of my running partners are wolves, so that kind of motivates me to push myself, you know, to be faster and develop more stamina.” Stiles drank from his own water while Jackson stretched. “Hey bud, what are you doing with the rest of your day?”

Jackson shrugged this time. “Lydia is spending the day with her mom and Danny is working at his new summer job, so I guess I’ll just hang out at home.”

“What about your parents?”

“They uh… they actually just flew to Belize. They left this morning.”

Stiles stared at Jackson. “You’ve been home for three weeks and they left without you? When are they coming back?”

Jackson bit his lip. “In two weeks, but then a week later they’re going to Mallorca.”

“And you’re just… alone all summer?”

Jackson hesitated for a few seconds before nodding. 

“Dude.”

Jackson shrugged, “It’s not that bad. I’m taking a page out of your book and taking a couple summer classes.”

Stiles threw his arm around Jackson’s shoulders, “We’re spending the day together. It’s official. I am not letting you spend your last day as a human sitting at home alone. We’re going to do something.”

“You don’t have to--” Jackson started but Stiles shook him gently. 

“Obviously I don’t have to,” Stiles laughed. “I want to. Plus, I was thinking about taking Ben shopping for new clothes. Do you want to come so you can preemptively save him from my terrible taste in fashion?”

Jackson scoffed, “You’re probably going to buy him nothing but plaid.”

“See? We need your help.”

“But… I’m all sweaty.”

Stiles gestured at the house, “Me too. You can shower here if you want, or you can go home. I could pick you up in… say an hour?”

Jackson hesitated. “You really don’t have to. I don’t want to barge in on your plans.”

“Dude,” Stiles said, shifting so he could hold both of Jackson’s shoulders and force him to make eye contact. “I want to spend the day with you.” He shook Jackson gently. “Plus, Ben thinks you’re super cool, so he’ll be excited.”

“He does?” 

“Yea,” Stiles agreed, glad to see Jackson smiling faintly. “Let’s see…” He ticked off his fingers as he spoke, “Your hair is cool. You drive a Porsche. You go to school in England. You’re dating Lydia.”

Jackson laughed finally. “Dating Lydia makes me cool?”

“Yea, he likes her hair a lot.”

“She does have nice hair,” Jackson agreed with a grin. “Alright fine. I’ll go home and shower, and how about I pick you two up in an hour? Ben can definitely fit in the back of the Porsche.”

“He’ll love that,” Stiles grinned. 

Two hours later, Ben had half a new wardrobe and Jackson had even picked out a few things for Stiles. He pretended to argue with Jackson about the style, but he was also mostly glad to see Jackson so invested in what they were doing.

“Hey, good news,” Stiles said as he glanced up from his phone after paying for everything with Laura’s debit card. “My dad’s in the area and wants to meet for lunch.”

Jackson glanced between Stiles and Ben. “Do you want me to drop you off?”

Stiles rolled his eyes, “No, dude, I want you to come eat with us.” Stiles turned on Jackson and jabbed his chest, “And do not even start with the whole, ‘we don’t need to, thing.’ My dad specifically said to bring you, here look.” He held out his phone so Jackson could read the conversation. “No protesting. We’re all going and we’re going to have a good time.”

Jackson pursed his lips and stared down at his shoes as they walked, but Stiles could tell that he was trying to keep in a smile. 

They ate at the outdoor patio out front of the restaurant, and when they were just finishing the meal, Boyd and James approached their table. 

“Well, look at who we’re running into,” James said with a grin to Boyd. “We were just about to go food shopping for your dinner.”

“My dinner?” Jackson asked, looking to Stiles for an answer.

“Of course, dude. Tonight’s pack gathering is all about you.”

“We’re going to make salmon, macaroni and cheese, asparagus, and garlic bread,” James said. 

“Plus there’s going to be an ice cream sundae bar,” Boyd added, giving Jackson’s shoulder a gentle punch. 

Jackson stared at the pair with an open mouth. “Those are my favorites.”

“We know,” James said with a chuckle. “Laura coordinated with Lydia and Danny. We’re also making burgers and curly fries for the people with less refined palates.”

“Hey,” Stiles said defensively. 

Jackson grinned, “You’re really doing all this for me?”

“Of course,” Boyd said with a small grin. “It was good seeing you guys, but we’ve got to head out so we can get everything done in time.”

“I didn’t realize that Boyd and James hang out,” Jackson mused once the pair was gone.

“Yea, Boyd’s particularly close with Erica’s whole family,” John explained. “He and James are like brothers in the same way that Derek and Isaac are now.”

“And they’re going shopping for me?”

“Well, they’re going shopping for the pack, and you’re part of it, so yea. But also, we want to make tonight special for you.”

“But I’m not really part of the pack,” Jackson protested. “Not yet.”

Stiles reached over and squeezed Jackson’s forearm. “You are part of the pack. You’re as much a part of the pack as my dad or Allison. Being a wolf doesn’t make you pack. It’ll just help you to feel the bonds more.”

Jackson glanced over at John, who raised his eyebrows and nodded. “We are, kiddo. I know we can’t feel it, but Stiles wouldn’t lie about something as important as this.”

“But what if you’re wrong?” Jackson whispered. 

Ben stood up and wrapped his arms around Jackson’s shoulders. “He isn’t,” he said softly. “Stiles isn’t ever wrong."

*

After dinner the whole pack got up to clear the table and wash the dishes, but they refused to let Jackson help. He waited until everyone left the room and he was alone with Lydia and Danny to lean over and whisper, “Why… why are they doing all of this?”

“What do you mean?”

“They’re just… everyone is being so considerate and I don’t get why.”

Lydia stared at him with wide eyes for a moment before leaning over and kissing his cheek. “It’s because they all realize how special you are. They’re doing this, all of this, to show you that they want you in the pack. The special meal, the whole pack gathered here, all of it, it’s to show you that you’re important.”

Laura came into the room and sat down on Jackson’s other side. “How are you feeling?” 

He swallowed and grinned, “Great. Excited. A little… nervous maybe, but excited.”

“Are you ready, or do you want to wait a while?”

“What?” Jackson asked, his eyes going round. “You want to do it now?”

Laura shrugged, “We could do it later, if you’d like. But if we get it out of the way now, you can just relax for the rest of the evening.”

“No… I guess we can do it now,” he said eventually. 

“Or if you don’t feel ready, we can wait and do it later, or even next month if you’re more comfortable,” Laura offered. “There’s no rush.”

“But I want it,” Jackson said, leaning toward her. “I want the bite. I do.”

Laura grinned, “Alright so then let’s do it.” 

“Um… where… where do you want to do it?”

Laura stood up, “Your side, right below your ribs. Come into the sitting room. Stiles is setting up the first-aid supplies, since you’ll bleed until you change over.”

Jackson laced his fingers through Lydia’s and the pair followed Laura. 

Stiles looked up as they walked into the room. “Hey bud,” he said, stepping over to hug Jackson. “I’ll be back in a bit, alright? I’m going to go ward the house.”

“Wait,” Jackson said, wincing slightly at the squeak in his voice. “You aren’t going to stay here while Laura bites me?”

Stiles blinked a few times and pointed with his thumb over his shoulder, “Usually I… but wait.” He turned and made a wide sweeping gesture with his arms and turned back around. “Alright that’s done.”

“You don’t even need to go out there to put it up now?” Laura asked.

“Well, that’s just the regular ward. I’d need to go out there to put down the wolfsbane, but this is fine for now.” He held his hand out to Jackson, “I’m here for you buddy. Let’s do this.”

Jackson held onto Stiles hand and looked at Lydia, who nodded and smiled. “We’re here for you,” she said softly.

Danny came up behind Jackson and put his hand on his shoulder. “How much is it going to hurt?” 

Laura sat down across from them. “Not too much. I mean, yea, it’ll hurt, but I can draw the pain out pretty constantly, or whichever beta you’re near can do it, and they all will, if you ask.” Laura leaned forward and stared into his eyes, “And I want you to ask, alright? If you don’t ask, I’m going to glue myself to your side all night and leech the pain out.”

Jackson chuckled, “Alright, if it’s bad, I’ll ask Isaac or someone.”

“Good,” she said with a small smile before letting her eyes bleed red slowly. “Here, stand up and lift up your shirt a bit.”

Jackson complied, although he reached back with his free hand so he could continue holding onto Lydia. Stiles and Danny shifted so that they could both hold onto Jackson’s shoulders. Laura glanced up at him again before placing her hand on his side. 

He jumped slightly and then grinned down at her ruefully. “Alright, maybe I’m a little nervous.”

“It’s going to be fine,” Laura said softly, although the gesture wasn’t quite as soothing as she meant it to be, since her fangs were just visible. “You ok?”

Jackson bit his lip and nodded. Laura returned the gesture before moving in slowly forward. She paused when she was an inch or so away from his skin, glancing up again. He nodded and closed his eyes just as she shifted forward the last inch and bit deeply into his skin. He gasped and flinched away from her as her hand came up to brace his back, black lines running up her arm as she pulled the pain out of him. 

Stiles stepped forward into the space that Laura had just occupied so he could place the gauze over the wound. 

Jackson glanced down, “That’s it? It’s over already?”

Stiles grinned at him from a few inches away as he straightened up, “That’s it, buddy. Now we just wait for you to change over.” 

Jackson glanced down again as Lydia placed the medical tape over the bandage Stiles was holding in place. “You ready for ice cream?” 

Laura shifted as Jackson let his shirt fall down. “How do you feel when I stop?” 

He winced slightly. “It’s not too bad.”

Lydia reached up and cupped Jackson’s jawline, squinting slightly as she stared into his eyes. 

“Alright, it hurts,” he acknowledged with a small shrug.

Laura reached out and laced her fingers with Jackson’s. “Come on, let’s go into the kitchen and make some sundaes.” She tugged gently and Jackson trailed behind her into the kitchen. 

When they entered the room, everyone let out a cheer. Isaac came over and looped his arm over Jackson’s shoulders, “How do you feel, my man?” Black lines streaked up Isaac’s arm as he led Jackson over to one of the stools at the island. “Ben said he wants to make your sundae, so place your order.” Laura and Lydia held back a moment before turning to join Stiles in the other room while he packed up the first aid supplies. 

Ben was standing expectantly on the other side of the counter holding an ice cream scoop in one hand. 

Jackson chuckled and leaned forward. Isaac slid onto the stool next to Jackson and shifted so their knees were touching. Jackson glanced down at them and then smiled faintly up at Isaac. “You’re appointed to me?”

Isaac chuckled, “No, jackass. I like you, and I don’t want you to be in pain. Derek did this for me when Laura bit me.”

Ben fake-coughed into his elbow. “I can’t make your ice cream if you don’t tell me what you want.”

“What flavors do you have?”

“Vanilla, chocolate, mint chocolate chip, and cherry vanilla.”

Jackson grinned widely, “Cherry vanilla, then, please. It’s my favorite.”

“He’d also like chocolate syrup and crunchies,” Lydia said as she sidled up beside him. Jackson wrapped an arm around Lydia’s waist, and she turned to kiss him. “I was just helping put everything away,” she explained. 

Ben slid the bowl toward Jackson, who caught it with a grin. “Thanks Ben.”

He gave a dramatic bow and began to scoop ice cream into another bowl. 

Stiles came up and pressed a kiss to Ben’s head, “I see you’re putting Sasha’s teachings to good use.”

Ben grinned up at Stiles. “It’s too bad we won’t still be living down there when I’m old enough to work in the ice cream shop.”

“Well, there are a couple here in Beacon Hills,” Stiles suggested. “Are you in a hurry to get a job?”

Ben shrugged. “It’d be cool to work with Sasha or one of the other people in their pack.” Ben glanced at Jackson and Lydia, “Lillian’s pack, down by Stanford, they have a bunch of weres and humans who are around my age. It’s cool to hang out with them sometimes.”

“That’s really cool,” Lydia grinned. 

Erica, Boyd, and James came into the kitchen together. “We set up the couches and brought down all the extra pillows and blankets that were free. Who’s ready for some Netflix?”

Jackson glanced down at his half-full bowl of ice cream. “Bring it,” Isaac said with a grin as Ben slid a bowl across the counter toward him. “Do you have one yet, pup?” 

“I’ll make it,” Stiles said, pushing Ben toward the tv room, “Go get comfy.” Stiles whipped up three bowls of ice cream quickly and was glad when Derek found him in the kitchen, “Oh good, you’re here. I was going to levitate your bowl in because I didn’t trust myself to carry it without dropping it.”

Derek laughed and picked up the bowl as he stepped into Stiles’ space to kiss him. 

They both froze and turned toward the tv room when they heard Lydia gasp. Derek turned back to glance at Stiles with concern before turning and running out of the room. Stiles was a step behind and they both stopped to take in the room. 

Lydia was staring at Jackson with horror as he looked down at his hand. He had clearly wiped at the blood dripping out of his nose and was staring at it with a matching look of horror dawning on his face. 

The blood everyone was staring at, the blood that was continuing to drip out of his nose, was black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SORRY
> 
> But also... xD


	7. Jackson

“No,” Laura breathed out, dropping to her knees on the floor next to Jackson. Her hands hovered over him, unsure what to do. She looked to Lydia, who nodded minutely. 

Jackson tracked the exchange between Lydia and Laura. “Wait. No. I’m going to die?”

“No!” Stiles and Laura said simultaneously. Laura reached out as Stiles vaulted over the couch and landed next to Jackson. 

“But… but you said…” Jackson stammered, looking pleadingly at Laura. “You said if my body rejects the bite I would die.”

“But you’re not rejecting it,” Stiles insisted firmly. “You’re just not accepting it yet. Right Laura? Derek?” They both looked at him with equally bewildered and horrified expressions. Stiles turned back to Jackson. “You have to let it happen. You have to relax.”

Jackson laughed helplessly, looking down at the black blood all over his hands. “I’ve never relaxed a day in my life,” he said with a note of hysteria in his voice. “How am I supposed to start now?”

Derek knelt down so he was between Stiles and Laura and took hold of Jackson’s hands. “Jackson, look around. Look.” Jackson complied and looked around the room, taking in the anxious faces of the whole pack. “Why are we all here?”

“I don’t know,” Jackson said with a whine. “Because it’s pack night. Because it’s tradition. Because… because Laura asked you to.”

“No,” Derek said firmly. “Why are we here?”

Ben came up next to Stiles and handed him a tissue box. Stiles grinned quickly in thanks before grabbing a bunch and pressing them to Jackson’s face. 

“Why are we all here?” Derek repeated, shaking Jackson’s hands gently. 

“For me,” Jackson gasped out around the tissues. “Because I got the bite. Because I’m… I’m part of the pack.” Jackson looked around the room again. “Because I’m part of the pack.”

Derek nodded. “You are. You’re one of us. And we’re all here because we all believe it. Laura didn’t tell any of us to come, or even ask us to be here. She just told us she was going to bite you. We all came because we want to be here. Because we love the pack. And you’re part of the pack, so we love you too.” Jackson’s eyes continued to flit around, so Derek shook his hands gently again, drawing his attention back. “Stiles told you about my first girlfriend, right? Paige?” Jackson nodded. “She died because she didn’t know what was happening. She died because she wasn’t told, because she didn’t understand the bite, because she was scared and felt attacked and abandoned. I didn’t know it at the time, because I was just a kid, but I could have saved her.” Tears streamed down Derek’s face as he continued to speak, staring into Jackson’s eyes. “I could have saved her if I explained everything, if I helped her to understand, if I had supported her. She died because she was terrified and couldn’t accept what was happening.”

“But… but I’m not terrified,” Jackson protested softly. Everyone watched him silently for a moment before he continued. “Alright… maybe I don’t believe I actually belong in the pack and like… I’m not good enough…”

Derek pursed his lips and shook his head. “Jackson… it’s not about being good enough. None of us are… perfect or like… pure or anything. Laura, Ben, and I have all killed people we loved, and Laura and I have both killed people in self-defense. And Stiles… Stiles wouldn’t hesitate to do anything in his power to protect all of us. That doesn’t make any of us bad… but we’re certainly not perfect either. You belong in this pack as much as any of us do.”

“It’s not about whether you deserve to be in the pack or not,” Isaac said as he sat on the coffee table. He leaned one arm around Derek’s shoulders and reached the other out to rest it on Jackson’s knee. “You’re already in the pack. We all see you as part of the pack. That’s why we’re here. You just need to accept our love and realize what it means.”

“We’re stronger together,” Laura added softly, “but that doesn’t mean that we’re weak on our own. The pack makes all of our lives better… just by being together. Any of us could leave the pack and be independent… it’s possible… but we don’t want to.” She leaned closer and cupped Jackson’s jawline. “We’re all pack because we want to be, not because the rest of the pack says we are. We all chose this, and we continue to choose it every day.”

“You always do this,” Danny said quietly. “You withdraw and act defensive so that no one can get inside your walls, so no one can get close to you.”

“You fought being my friend for years,” Stiles added from Jackson’s other side. “Remember? But what happened when you finally accepted that we’re friends? When you finally chose me?”

“You’re one of my best friends now,” Jackson said with a soft sob. “You’re saying that I’m dying right now because I’m not accepting the pack? That I don’t believe that I fit here enough?”

Lydia leaned in and pressed her forehead against Jackson’s neck. “Believe it, babe. Believe it for all of us. None of us want to lose you. Please.”

He closed his eyes for a moment before looking back at Lydia suddenly. “You can see lifelines, Lyds. What does mine look like now?”

“It’s hazy,” she admitted. “But for a couple minutes there, it changed, and it was short, like… imminent short, but now it’s hazy again. Jackson, this is up to you. It’s not decided. It’s a choice. Your choice.”

“We want you,” Laura said softly. “But you need to accept that. You have to accept that we genuinely want you, and you have to choose us back.”

Jackson closed his eyes and took several deep breaths. He opened his eyes and looked down at Derek, who was still kneeling on the floor in front of him and holding one of his hands.

Derek smiled softly when he realized that Jackson was studying him. “Your nose stopped bleeding,” he pointed out.

“What?” Jackson asked, touching his nose briefly. “It did?” He glanced at Stiles, “Did you do something? With your magic?”

Stiles let out a sound that was halfway between a laugh and a sob as he wrapped his arms around Jackson’s shoulders and pulled so their foreheads rested against each other, “No, you beautiful, amazing, thick-skulled brute. You did this.”

*

Stiles nearly dropped the groceries when he walked into the house a few weeks later. “What is going on?”

Isaac, Jackson, Ben, and Derek all froze, staring at Stiles with wide eyes. Ben started giggling first, which led to the three men laughing as well. Ben and Isaac slid sideways from where they were both sitting on Jackson’s chest, and Derek dropped the pillow that he was holding aloft above the group.

“We were practicing control,” Ben explained with a giggle. 

Derek came forward to lift the groceries out of Stiles’ arms, leaning in for a quick kiss before he gently hip checked him toward the doors. “Go get the rest of the food, and then you can join us. We haven’t managed to make Jackson lose control yet, which is half of the point of this exercise.”

Stiles widened his eyes as he grinned, “Oh, you need someone to annoy him while the rest of you jump on him? You’ve found the perfect person.”

“Hey wait,” Jackson started as Stiles spun and ran back outside. In just a few minutes, once all the groceries were put away, they were all gathered in the room again, this time surrounding Jackson. “So just to be clear,” he said, “you all want me to lose control.”

“Yea,” Isaac said with a grin. “That way you can practice getting it back again.”

“Derek and Stiles would do this with me all the time when I first moved in with them,” Ben explained.

Jackson glanced at Isaac, “Did you do this too? When Laura first bit you?”

Isaac laughed and glanced at Stiles, “No, I… uh… took a slightly different approach to learning control.”

Stiles laughed loudly and punched at Isaac’s shoulder. “But that offer is not on the table anymore,” Stiles added, looking towards Jackson again.

Jackson blushed slightly, “Got it,” he said with a nod. “So… uh… what do we do first?”

Ben launched at Jackson at the same time Stiles used his spark to levitate two pillows at Jackson, hitting him one after the other in quick succession. He rolled Ben off of him, but Isaac wrapped his arms around Jackson’s middle and lifted him up. The pair ended up flipping over, and when Jackson straightened up finally, Stiles threw another pillow to smack him in the face. 

Jackson let out a growl and his eyes glowed golden, “Stiles, you are indeed perfectly annoying.” Another pillow flew at him, which he smacked before it could hit him. “Is this not enough? Do I need to shift fully?”

Stiles laughed, “Nah, I’ll stop. Can you stop the eye-glow?”

Jackson growled softly, but after a moment his eyes faded back to their regular blue. “Alright. I did it once, now what?”

Stiles laughed and threw a pillow at Jackson again as Ben jumped onto Jackson’s back. Jackson shouted and spun, although Stiles noted that he braced Ben as he swirled so he wouldn’t fly off and get hurt. 

After nearly half an hour of the group sparring, Jackson’s eyes turned golden, but instead of stopping to breathe deeply and center himself like he had the past few times, he shoulder checked Isaac out of the way and leapt onto Stiles. 

Stiles shot his hands out and threw up a small shield around himself as they fell together. He felt as Jackson’s claws clenched around the shield, but this was one he had begun working on developing after he’d been jumped last year. The magic clung to him like a second-skin, preventing anything from penetrating it. 

Stiles rolled them as they fell and after a moment, he knelt on top of Jackson’s chest and used his magic to pin his arms above his head. He snarled up at Stiles and struggled against the pressure, but Stiles held him in place as the others came up to surround them. Derek and Isaac knelt on either of Stiles, Derek reaching out to place his palm on Jackson’s chest. 

“Breathe, Jackson,” Derek said softly, “breathe.”

Jackson closed his eyes and took several harsh breaths before he was able to slow his breathing down slightly. “You can let go of me,” he said eventually, lisping slightly around the fangs.

“Well, you stopped growling at least,” Stiles commented as he withdrew the wards and leaned back.

“How the hell did you pin me so effectively?” Jackson asked, opening his eyes finally. The golden glow was still there, but it was slowly fading. “Derek and Isaac and I can’t even pin each other that easily.”

Stiles wiggled his fingers, “I cheated.”

Jackson laughed, his teeth finally fully human and his eyes blue. “That makes sense. It’s the only way you could beat me.”

Stiles leaned forward quickly so he could press a kiss to Jackson’s forehead before he jumped up and away. “Again?”

Jackson groaned, “Fine, but then can we do something else after?”

“I’m hungry,” Ben announced. “Can we order a pizza?”

“I just went shopping,” Stiles pointed out. 

Ben shrugged. “Can we make a pizza?”

“I can go get the dough started while you keep training,” Derek offered. 

Jackson held his hand up to Isaac, who reached down and lifted him up. “Come on buddy, we just have to do this a few dozen more times and then you’ll be able to do it all on your own.”

“I still want to know how you learned your control,” Ben said, looking up at Isaac. “You’re as good as Derek and Laura. You definitely have the best control of any of the other betas, and you still won’t tell me how you learned.”

Jackson snorted and turned away while Isaac patted Ben’s shoulder. “I’ll tell you someday. In a couple years, probably.”

Ben sulked, so Stiles reached out with his magic and levitated him so he could toss the kid at Jackson. Ben’s face lit up as he landed on Jackson’s back, which made Stiles laugh as Jackson let out an undignified squawk and flailed. 

Laura walked in half an hour later and laughed at the sight of everyone wrestling on the ground. Jackson had successfully controlled his shift a few more times and they had all decided to team up on Ben and tickle him. 

“What’s for dinner?” Laura asked as Derek came out of the kitchen. 

“Pizza,” he answered, opening his arms for a hug. 

They looked down at the giggling mess of limbs on the floor. Laura toed at Stiles gently, “Your dad is coming for dinner tonight.”

Isaac picked his head up, “Allison’s coming too.”

Derek chuckled, “Well, it’ll basically be a full house then. James, Erica, and Boyd are on their way too. I’ll go see what I can collect from the garden.”

“I’ll help!” Stiles said as he extricated himself from the others. “I know there’s a lot of good lettuce, and I think there should be tomatoes and peppers too.”

“Check on a couple carrots,” Laura said, as she pulled Stiles in for a quick hug. “They might still be on the small side, but you can probably get enough for a salad.”

“What can I do?” Jackson asked. 

Laura reached down to help pull him up. “You felt like you were handling your shifts really well.”

Jackson shrugged, but grinned as Laura pulled him for a hug too. Ben and Isaac wrapped their arms around the pair. 

“He was doing really well,” Isaac said. “He even got the jump on Stiles, and we got to see his new body shield in action. It was pretty cool.”

“Oh yea?” Laura asked, looking up at Jackson. 

He chuckled, “Yea, but then he pinned me in like, a second.”

Laura laughed, “Don’t feel bad. It takes the entire pack to pin him normally, or I can do it sometimes if I’ve disguised my aura enough. But he’s even learning how to sense me while I do that, so I’m not sure how long I’ll have that bonus.”

“Hey inside folks,” Derek said from the yard, “if you’re all just going to stand and chat, you could start getting the pizza dough ready.”

“Ben, come on, I’ll show you how we do it,” Isaac said.

“I’m going to go change,” Laura commented, “but I’ll be back in a minute to help.”

“You’ll have to teach me too,” Jackson said. “I’ve never made pizza from scratch before.”

“Come on. You’ll impress the whole pack,” Isaac said with a grin as he wrapped one arm around Jackson and the other around Ben.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you're not too mad... Jackson's shift couldn't be completely seamless, but I still 100% just want them all to be happy. 
> 
> Also, I know I've been talking about the show-down with Kate for a while now, but I've plotted out the whole thing and actually started writing it... so it's real and it's coming.


End file.
